Thank goodness for Gregory’s posts on Air Filters. We are the first to admit that we had neglected this essential part of our HVAC's maintenance...
As you can see from the photo, we went well past the recommended 3 month usage for our HVAC’s air filters. There is something horrifying and yet strangely fascinating about the amount of, well, crap, that can build up in an air filter. We'd rather not think about what we've been breathing in all summer.
It was so simple to change, we feel silly for not doing it sooner. They pop right in and out of our vents and took us all of 5 minutes to do. New filters are available at most hardware stores in a variety of sizes and brands. We've even seen them at Target. Prices can range dramatically depending on the brand and the duration of use (30 days to 3 months).
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i change mine every month. living in arizona = lots of dust. after 30 days they're GROSS
One of the cool features on my programmable digital thermostat is the blinky reminder to change my filter. Totally useful.
I went the whole summer without changing my ac filter. It really did affect the peformance.
I purchased re-usable filters from Lowes for about 19 bucks. Thought it was more enviro friendly than the cheap disposable ones.
I had one of those until my A/C guy told me that fancy allergen-control filters make the unit work harder and wear out faster. As I was writing him a rather substantial check for the replacement of an A/C coil at the time, I decided to take his word for it and switched back to the cheapy filters.
Good reminder! I just bought some new ones (I have 3 intakes for some reason and all three are a different size). I hadn't done it in a year and with the dogs they were FOUL. Since it was hard to find the sizes I needed, I bought enough for the next change too.
I try to change mine once a month, but sometimes it goes a little longer... I just changed mine this weekend and there was a layer of dog hair on the one upstairs. Gross!
I agree with Jexebella 100%!!! The expensive Filtrete filters are a waste of money. Just get the cheaper ones and replace them more often. Your A/C until will be much happier for it.
Does anyone know if these can be washed so they can be reused? OR, what about recycling them?
Scott aka declutteryou.com
Thanks so much for the info. Great article. I've been having some problems with my unit lately and am looking for some help with my HVAC in Edmonton. Thanks for the help.